SUNDAY JUNE 24th 9:00 AM

Race Charities

We believe everyone facing a life-limiting illness should have access to the highest quality care, tailored to their needs and aimed at giving the best possible quality of life.
Rowcroft Hospice is striving to achieve this, through the on-going development of a specialist palliative care service for the communities of Torbay and South Devon, accessible to all who need it.

More than an in-patient ward...

Care is given free of charge to over 2200 patients each year at the hospice, in residential and nursing homes, in community hospitals and in people's homes through services that include a community team, hospice at home team, out-patient services and in-patient unit.

Please get in touch to let us know that you are running for Rowcroft!
We can give you a fantastic running vest !
Contact: Rosey Oakes on 01803 210835 / Rosey.Oakes@rowcroft-hospice.org.uk

Saturday 3 July 2010 was more than a typical busy day on Bantham beach in South Hams for senior lifeguard Mark Patrick and his colleagues. As Mark scanned the shoreline at around lunchtime, he spotted three men in their 60’s returning their 12-foot clinker sailing dinghy to the harbour on the River Avon.
He kept an eye on their progress, until suddenly Mark saw they were hit by a breaking wave at the mouth of the river. The wave capsized the boat and threw all three into the water, right in the midst of the confused changing tide and a treacherous current running out to sea.

When the RNLI lifeguards arrived on the scene the three casualties were desperately holding onto the capsized dinghy as the unforgiving current swept them further out to sea. None of the men were wearing lifejackets, one of them was unable to swim and all three were clearly distressed.
RNLI lifeguards Craig and John entered the water and gave the men lifejackets whilst securing them with rescue tubes. Once secured they were transferred to the inshore rescue boats and taken back to Sedgewell Cove where RNLI lifeguard Felicity Taylor treated them for mild hypothermia and minor cuts and bruises.

RNLI lifeguard Michael Mapson described the severity of the incident: ‘The three men were extremely lucky that the RNLI lifeguards were on patrol and were able to react swiftly, as the water and currents around the river mouth are fierce. The men were very grateful for our assistance - they already support the RNLI but they said they never thought they’d ever need our help. It just goes to show how unpredictable the sea is. Accidents can happen to even the most experienced people.’

You can help us to raise vital finds in order to keep our Lifeguards saving lives at sea in South Hams and all across the South West coastline.

One moment you’re a happy family watching your beautiful children growing up in front of you; the next one of them is diagnosed with an illness from which they may never recover. You or your partner - or both of you - have to give up work to care for your sick child. As a result, money gets tight and you are forced to carry a terrible burden of worry which you can never put down. But you have to carry on being brave for the kids.

It’s your worst nightmare. Sadly, for some families it’s a cruel reality. But Torbay Holiday Helpers Network (THHN) can play a small part in making these families’ lives a little bit more bearable.
How? THHN offers free action packed holidays, meals out, days out and other treats to families who have seriously ill or bereaved children, families who have a terminally ill parent and to families who have lost a parent.

What THHN offers is not going to cure any illness or change any situation. But what it does do is offer them a positive distraction and a chance to temporarily escape the nightmares that they sadly call reality, and give them memories that they will treasure forever that will help carry them through the very dark days that may lay ahead. Because sadly for some families it has been their last holiday as a complete family.

We invite you to join our team - run for THHN and be a "Memory Maker"

To find out more about the work of the Torbay Holiday Helpers Network visit www.thhn.co.uk

Jay was a very kind, caring and helpful person. In our minds there is no doubt that if he had known more, or been given the chance, he would have wanted to somehow make a difference to the situation regarding young cardiac death in the area he lived and loved.

We also feel that working in education, with the age group that are most at risk from sudden cardiac death, gives us a fantastic opportunity to raise the awareness of this very little known area of health and wellbeing.

Our mission statement is to reduce the number of young people who die of sudden cardiac arrest in the South West of England. We believe this objective can be met by our three aims: Assess, Inform and Make a Difference. Learn more by clicking on the tabs in the header at the top of this page.

The Magic Moments Children’s Charity was set up in 1998 by Alick Smith, the then Chairman of the UK’s largest independent estate agency Spicerhaart, and his wife Val. The charity was formally known as the Fantasy Charity Fund, the charity has raised in excess of £1m over the years and is dedicated to helping children from our supported hospices and their families on annual trips to Disneyland Paris.

Bowel Cancer West is a local charity aiming to make survival rates of people with bowel cancer in the South West the highest in the UK. Currently, one in three people know someone with bowel cancer.

We are looking to make a big impact by giving the disease the attention it needs. Currently, it’s a big problem facing the west country and we must do more to shout about in.

The funds you raise through running the Torbay Half Marathon will be put directly back into the local community to help fight this disease. We take a three-pronged approach:

We raise AWARENESS on the symptoms of bowel cancer in local communities. Incidents of the disease are high and awareness levels of the symptoms are alarmingly low. If caught early, survival rates can increase to more than 90%.

We fund additional bowel cancer TRAINING for doctors and nurses across the south west

We fund west country driven (but internationally recognised) RESEARCH projects surrounding the disease and support for patients where there is a gap in national research.

If you are interested in joining our team, please contact: edward@bowelcancerwest.com
To find out more about your charity and understand the symptoms of Bowel Cancer, please visit our website: www.bowelcancerwest.com

At Children's Hospice South West (CHSW) we provide care for children who are not expected to survive into adulthood. The care we offer is wide ranging; respite, emergency, palliative and end of life care. From diagnosis through to bereavement and beyond, we are there for as long as the family needs us.

We are delighted to be involved with this year’s Torbay Half Marathon so that we can raise valuable awareness and funds every penny raised in sponsorship lets our skilled, qualified and totally committed staff make more precious memories for children with a life-limiting illness in the South West.

We are so grateful to all of our runners and supporters at the Torbay Half Marathon, and when you cross the finish line on the 24th June we hope you'll feel like a champion in more ways than one.

It would be fantastic if you were able to support our wonderful charity by running the Torbay Half Marathon. We have some charity places available, but if you’ve already secured your place you can still run for us! You can find out more information on our website or by getting in touch with Laura at laura.robertson@chsw.org.uk or 01271 325270.